Feb. 3, 2004
IOWA CITY, IA – The University of Iowa Swimming and Diving team will honor its five seniors Friday and Saturday at the UI Field House Pool in a dual meet against Big Ten opponent Northwestern.
The Hawkeyes have five seniors swimming in their final home dual meet this weekend. Iowa’s five seniors are Gregg Gazvoda, David Mazur, Andrei Prada, John Singer and Jason Snider. The class of four swimmers and one diver has seen all five seniors contribute immensely to the growth of the University of Iowa’s men’s swimming and diving program, and has been integral in building a strong foundation for future classes.
Gazvoda, who is from Madison, WI, has been an excellent freestyle swimmer for the Hawkeyes the past four years. His best performances so far came at the Big Ten Championships during the 2000-01 season, swimming individual bests in the 100, 200 and 500 freestyle events. He also swam legs in two top ten finishes at the Big Ten Championships for the Hawkeyes in the 800 and 200 freestyle relays. Gazvoda will graduate with a degree in biology this spring.
“While Gregg usually competes in the 200 and 500 freestyles he is more than willing to step into events in the line-up where we might be weak,” Iowa Coach John Davey says. “It’s this attitude which makes him a great team player.”
Co-captain Mazur, a native of Middleton, WI, has had a strong presence in the sprint events during his time at Iowa. Mazur, a three-time letterwinner for Iowa, came on strong last season with collegiate best times in the 200 freestyle, 100 and 200 butterfly events. Dave has been captain the past two seasons and has been a source of inspirational leadership. Mazur will earn a degree in economics this spring.
“There have been few people come through the program that have Dave’s work ethic,” said Davey. “He’s someone you can always count on and is respected by all his teammates.”
Prada, who hails from Suceava, Romania, has had an impressive four years as a Hawkeye. Last year, Prada swam solid all season finishing in the top five in 13 individual events and was part of seven victorious Hawkeye relay teams. A multiple finalist at the Big Ten Championships, his career so far has been highlighted by a sixth place finish at the 2002 Big Ten Championships in the 100 breaststroke. He appears second and fourth on the Iowa all-time top ten times list in the 100 and 200 breaststrokes, respectively. He has also been a regular on relays at Big Tens. Prada is a business major.
“Andrei will be sorely missed,” said Davey. “He has the ability to be a major factor in a number of events in a dual meet. He has a great attitude and has been a great influence on the underclassmen recently.”
Singer has been a very successful diver the past few years as a Hawkeye. Last season the three-time letterwinner season recorded six top-five performances. His season was highlighted by his third place finish against South Dakota, after he posted a personal best performance of 255.37 in the one meter event. The native of Scottsbluff, NE, is a political science major and will graduate in the spring.
“John has been a hard worker his whole time at Iowa and has improved every year,” Coach Rydze, said “He could always be counted on to score points in difficult situations.”
Snider was elected co-captain this season because of his excellent leadership qualities and his impressive performances in the pool. Last season Snider led the team in the 500 freestyle and the 100 and 200 butterfly events and was a member of the 200 and 400 medley relays and the 400 freestyle relay at Big Ten’s. The native of Clive, IA, appears fourth and fifth on Iowa’s all-time top 10 performance list respectively in the 100 and 200 butterfly events, as well as eighth in the 200 individual medley. Snider has been a permanent fixture on the dean’s list with a 4.0 GPA and will graduate with a degree in finance in the spring. He recently became engaged to long-time high school sweetheart Jenny, and will be married in December.
“Jason has been a great asset to the Hawkeye program in many ways,” said Davey. “He’s been very consistent in his swimming throughout his four years and has always been someone I could count on to get the job done in pressure situations.”